Houston fans are pumped for 'Black Panther' superhero...

2of 21Bianca Lister searches for issues of the Black Panther comic book series at Bedrock City Comic Company, Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018, in Houston. She ended up buying a #9 from the original volume for a duplicate set of the original series she is putting together in her personal collection. Lister has been a fan of the series for a long time, and she is excited about the upcoming premiere of the movie. "I work, I go to school, and I'm still going to the midnight premiere," said Lister. One downside of the popularity of the upcoming movie is that Lister has seen the availability of the comics she collects go down and prices go up.Photo: Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle

20of 21Danai Gurira, from left, Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nyong'o are featured in "Black Panther."Photo: Marvel

21of 21Cover of Black Lightning comic bookPhoto: Marvel

Superhero blockbuster "Black Panther," which makes its leap from comic book to the big screen Friday, defies decades of Hollywood tradition by featuring a virtually all-black cast in a movie genre that traditionally has been white.

That is precisely why Cerendy Sias is so pumped for the film's opening. The Houston educational counselor and her Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sisters had special clothes designed for the occasion — pink and green shirts topped with the words "Black Panther."

"It's a movie filled with African-Americans, and it's the first time to see a superhero that looks like my nephew or my brother," Sias said.

The film, featuring the first black superhero in a Marvel comic book, has morphed into an extraordinary moment of pride in black culture.

Advanced ticket sales for "Black Panther" have broken records with the box-office tracking service NRG now expecting a $165 million weekend. That would put the film in range to crack the top all time opening weekends, which is rare for a film released in February.

Leaders in African-American communities are seizing the moment.Former Houston Texans running back Arian Foster is hosting a screening for 400 boys on Thursday. Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church is also renting out a theater. One black-owned Houston company, Africa on My Back, has bought out an auditorium at AMC Studio 30 for a private Thursday night screening for 230 boys.

"It's important for them to see themselves as a hero," said Shannette Prince, founder of Africa on My Back, a firm that sells African-themed backpacks and messenger bags. "Sometimes, when it comes to black boys, there's negative connotations that goes along with them. This time, they'll be able to see themselves as a superhero, not someone saving them, but being able to save themselves."

The film has gotten some pushback, too. Facebook recently deactivated a group whose aim was to drive down the audience score for "Black Panther" on the review-aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes. But, reviews of the film have been positive, lending the movie an extremely high 97 percent rating as of Tuesday. That's powerful word-of-mouth going into opening weekend."We're talking over a $100 million debut for a character really no one had heard of before," said Jeff Bock, a Los Angeles-based box-office analyst for Exhibitor Relations, an entertainment research and data firm.

David Wahlen, general manager of the Bedrock City Comic Company on Westheimer Road, says he has seen a surge in interest from customers. "We're playing up Black Panther quite a bit," he says. "We have a special display in the store of all Black Panther merchandise. A lot of people have been asking for T-shirts. The comic sells really well."

The film had its Houston premiere Saturday at a screening sponsored by the Houston Museum of African-American Culture and the audience response was enthusiastic. Husband and wife Terry Sowells and Dalana Sowells left impressed. Dalana liked that its message was about building bridges instead of barriers. "It was amazing," she said. "I thought they did a wonderful job. ... It's a well-crafted storyline."

'Tears in my eyes'

Back in 'Black'

Here are some of the 'Black Panther' screening events in the Houston area that are listed on Eventbrite. For more information on each, go to www.eventbrite.com.

A Night in Wakanda: 'Black Panther' premiere and after party

6 p.m. Feb. 15

Edwards Greenway Grand Palace

3839 Wesleyan

Houston

$10-$100

A Night of Black Excellence - 'Black Panther' Premiere

6:30 p.m. Feb. 15

AMC Gulf Pointe 30

11801 S. Sam Houston Parkway

Houston

$30

'Black Panther' Movie Premiere/Party

6:30 p.m. Feb. 16

Studio Movie Grill

822 Town and Country Blvd.

Houston

$30-$60

'Black Panther' Houston Theatre Takeover

7 p.m. Feb. 16

Alamo Drafthouse

531 Mason Rd.

Katy

$15

'Black Panther' viewing and Our MARVELous History in Comics

2 p.m. Feb. 18

Regal Grand Parkway 22

7301 West Grand Parkway South

Richmond

$20

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There have been films built around black superheroes before — Wesley Snipes broke ground in the vampire-themed "Blade" in 1998 and Will Smith starred as the emotionally troubled but valiant title character in "Hancock" a decade later. But none generated the anticipation of "Black Panther."

Though, it's about more than just box office bang.

The Capital City Black Film Festival, which sponsors a monthly screening of a black-themed films in its home base of Austin, is using "Black Panther" as a way to market itself in other Texas cities. It has allied with the Alamo Drafthouse chain for showings in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

"We've not done something as big as this," says Winston G. Williams, the festival's executive director, who is not surprised by the enthusiasm. "The Marvel comics are an icon in our society, and the number of people who read them and know about them is huge."

One of those readers is Houston HVAC technician and Marvel fan Daniel Stanford who's anxious to see "Black Panther" even though he has been disappointed in the way black superheroes have been depicted in the past. He particularly disliked "Hancock," saying sarcastically, "Wow, he's a superhero, he's homeless and he's a drunk. Something's not right."

"Black Panther" is different. Underneath the mask, the title character is T'Challa, the warrior king of the fictional, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda, who fights evil and rights wrong as his alter ego, Black Panther. Created by Marvel's Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, he first appeared in a "Fantastic Four" comic book in 1966 and was the first superhero of African descent in a mainstream comic.

Alexander Yarde, who writes about geek culture for The Good Men Project, a site devoted to "enlightened masculinity," almost cried when he saw the first "Black Panther" trailer last fall."I watched that trailer like 10 times in a row because I'd never seen anything like that before. (The characters) are intelligent. They are fierce. ... This is unprecedented," he said.

"It has been 20 or more years that we've had these superhero, big-event movies and (blacks) have been pretty much on the periphery, best friends or supporting characters. This is a watershed moment and for me, as a person who has loved geek culture and loved comic books and comic-book films, and they haven't always loved us back, now I'm feeling the love."

'Panther' pushback

For those yearning for superheroes of color, this could be something of a golden age. Black Panther is not the only black superhero prowling the media landscape these days.

On the small screen, "Luke Cage" on Netflix and "Black Lightning" on The CW are making their presence felt. "Marvel Rising," a new animated franchise featuring a multi-racial group of young crime fighters, is also set for 2018.

"The bigger statement, even more than (it being) people of color, is that these are fresh, new, different voices," says Darrell Miller, a Los Angeles attorney who represents high-profile actors including Angela Bassett, who stars in "Black Panther," "Luke Cage" series creator Cheo Coker and Reginald Hudlin, who has written some "Black Panther" comics, says, "You're going to see more and more people jumping on with women and people of color as characters and superheroes because we are becoming a more diverse and interesting society," Miller said.

Still, not everybody's on the bandwagon. Some moviegoers, like those who objected online to the female-led films "Wonder Woman," "Mad Max: Fury Road," and the rebooted "Star Wars" franchise, feel these new-generation heroes are more about increasing diversity than anything else. Last summer, Austin-based Alamo Drafthouse briefly set the internet on fire when the chain scheduled women-only screenings of "Wonder Woman."

Williams of the Capital City Black Film Festival says he's aware of the "Wonder Woman" controversy. "We sat and talked about that specifically and these ('Black Panther') screenings are open to everybody," he said. "We're really hoping to see a diverse crowd."And some expressing frustration feel that the ascension of new superheroes will come at the expense of the ones they grew up with, Yarde says. What he wants to see is an expanded universe with room for all. "If you like original Coke, then drink original Coke. But guess what? I like Diet Coke or Coke Zero. ... It's not taking anything away. It's adding to it."

He's just glad that his children will have more black-themed entertainment options than he had. "My kids can come up now and they have a 'Black Panther' film they can look back on and say, 'Wow, this is great.' "

Cary Darling joined the Houston Chronicle in 2017 where he writes about arts, entertainment and pop culture, with an emphasis on film and media. Originally from Los Angeles and a graduate of Loyola Marymount University, he has been a features reporter or editor at the Orange County Register, Miami Herald, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. In addition, he has freelanced for a number of publications including the Los Angeles Times and Dallas Morning News.